Friday, August 30, 2013

I just received an
email that contained a condemnation of the film "The Butler." The email was supposedly written by Michael Reagan (Ronald Reagan's son), in which he chastised the movie for being a distortion of the life of Eugene Allen (a real White House butler), in which Ronald Reagan was portrayed as a racist.

In truth, “The Butler”
was never supposed to be about ONE butler, but rather a composite—a fact that
director Lee Daniels has consistently reiterated.It also did not portray Ronald Reagan as a
racist, but rather as someone sympathetic to the civil rights cause.This is demonstrated by the film’s assertion
that Reagan supported the lead character’s request for equal pay for the African
American help.The movie only implied
that Reagan was on the wrong side of the South Africa/apartheid issue, which is
true.

Overall, the
movie was about parents, children, and the civil rights movement and how the
character of the butler was often on the wrong side of that issue, choosing to run
from it rather than facing it head-on.Although I am white, I remember having similar
arguments with my parents, who weren’t always ready to accept the actions of
Dr. King, the Freedom Riders, or others who were willing to confront racism,
choosing instead the more passive “things will change in time” approach.

If Michael Reagan
actually wrote this, he is being reactionary and misguided.The only president the movie actually skewers
is Nixon, and he deserves as much skewering as possible.

Make no
mistake, The Butler is a Hollywood movie, but it’s a good one and one that
raises some real, solid issues, while putting the times in historical
perspective.As a film, it has its
faults in terms of character development and continuity, but the area it best
addresses has to do with the public and the presidents slowly coming to grips
with what happened to millions of Americans over a 50-year period.Each of us should see it for himself or herself
before making any further judgments.

Sunday, August 25, 2013

People
who know my propensity for listing the movies I like are often asking me which
movies I look forward to seeing in a given year.To begin with, I have already enjoyed several
movies this year, including (alphabetically) “The Butler,” “In a World,” “Side Effects,” “The Way Way Back,” “White
House Down,” and “42.”But, as we all
know, many of the movies that may be outstanding have yet to be released.So, here are the movies I most look forward to
seeing during the last four months of 2013.They are listed alphabetically:

·“All Is Lost”This movie about an older man alone on a sinking
sailboat may not sound like much, but with 76-year-old Robert Redford in the
lead role, it promises to be an Oscar contender.

·“American Hustle” Since “Flirting With
Disaster” in 1996, David O. Russell has made a string of movies that are as
good as or better than any other director’s work during that period, including “Three
Kings,” “I Heart Huckabees,” “The Fighter,” and “Silver Linings Playbook.”Here, he’s working with a familiar cast that
includes Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, and
Jeremy Renner.This may be my most
highly anticipated film of 2013.

·“Anchorman 2: The Legend
Continues”I admit to considerable laughter during the
original Anchorman movie, and the same crew is returning for the sequel.For my money, this was Will Ferrell’s best
role, and hopefully, they can repeat the magic.

·“August: Osage County” This could wind up being the
year’s best film, starring Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson,
Juliet Lewis, Ewan McGregor, Abigail Breslin, Chris Cooper, and many
others.The question mark seems to be
director John Wells, who is primarily a TV producer (ER, Southland, Shameless,
etc.).But the original play by Tracy
Letts, who also wrote the screenplay, is so good that it should transcend any
directorial mishaps.

·“Captain Phillips”Seeing Tom Hanks live on Broadway recently in “Lucky
Guy” reaffirmed how good an actor he is, given the right material.This could be that kind of material, and as
long as director Paul Greengrass sticks with the type of honest tension that
made “United 93” so effective and less with the fast-cutting approach of his
two Bourne movies, this one, about the 2009 pirate attack on the Maersk
Alabama, could be special.

·“Gravity” Alfonso Cuaron doesn’t make
a lot of films, but “Children of Men” was a great one.Here, he’s worked with George Clooney and
Sandra Bullock on a psychological drama set in space.

·“Inside Llewyn Davis” The story, about a Bob
Dylan-like performer in Greenwich Village, sounds like a small, indie flick,
except it is directed by the Cohen brothers and its cast includes Carey
Mulligan, Justin Timberlake, and John Goodman.We shall see.

·“Jack Ryan” I’ve enjoyed the other
movies based around Tom Clancy’s most famous character, so I’m willing to take
a flyer on this Kenneth Branagh-directed prequel, starring Chris Pine, Kevin
Costner, and Keira Knightley.

·“Labor Day,” Right up there with David O.
Russell is Jason Reitman, whose first four full-length films have been “Thank
You For Smoking,” “Juno,” “Up In the Air,” and “Young Adult.” Need I say
more?Here, he’s working with Josh
Brolin and Kate Winslet in his most dramatic attempt to date—a home invasion
story based on Joyce Maynard’s novel.

·“Machete Kills” For pure, gory action fun, there
have been few better movies than Robert Rodriguez’s “Machete” (2010).This is the sequel, still starring Danny Trejo,
Jessica Alba, and Michelle Rodriguez, but in this case, instead of Robert
DeNiro, Steven Segal, and Don Johnson, the supporting cast includes Mel Gibson,
Antonio Banderas, Lady Gaga, Charlie Sheen, Cuba Gooding, Edward James Olmos,
Sofia Vergara, and Venessa Hudgens (among others).

·“The Monuments Men” This sounds like a classic
WWII action flick, but it’s directed by George Clooney and stars Clooney, Matt
Damon, Bill Murray, and Cate Blanchett among others.

·“Riddick” David Twohy directed Vin Diesel
in the previous two Riddick movies—“Pitch Black" (2000) and “The Chronicles of
Riddick” (2004).The first was a brilliant
piece of horror/sci-fi/action and the second was an overblown piece of
crap.In interviews, Twohy has admitted
both and wants to get back to the level of suspense that made “Pitch Black” so
special.

·“The Secret Life of Walter
Mitty” I
loved the original film version of this Thurber story, which starred the
amazing Danny Kaye, so I’m both excited and worried about Ben Stiller’s remake.

·“The Wolf of Wall Street”In this movie, Martin Scorsese turns his
attention from gangsters to investment bankers in the early 1990s.With a great cast, headed by Leonardo
DiCaprio, it could be another “Goodfellas.”

·“12 Years a Slave” With movies like “Hunger”
and “Shame,” British director Steve McQueen is quickly establishing himself as
an expert in films in which psychological discomfort is a primary factor.Here, he again gets to direct Michael
Fassbender, this time with Chiwetel Ejiofor finally getting a
well-deserved lead role.

Monday, August 12, 2013

A few months ago, Joni and I joined a fitness club, and we’ve
been working out regularly. In doing so,
we have both learned the value of a good workout song—one that combines a
driving beat, a strong bass track, and interesting and/or enjoyable lyrics.

Toward that end, I’ve put together a Workout playlist that
includes my Top 50 as well as another 150+ songs that also meet the
criteria.They range in release dates
from 1961 until this week, and in styles including Pop, Hip Hop, Dance, Electronic, Alternative, and
Rock.I will occasionally update this
list as I add new songs to my list.Feel
free to print this out and/or direct other people to this blog.

They are listed alphabetically by artist, and some of the songs contain lyrics that may not be suited for all audiences.

The Top 50:

“Rolling In the Deep” by Adele

“Too Close” by Alex Clare

“Lost In Stereo (Cobra Starship Suave Suarez Remix)” by All
Time Low

“Let the Games Begin” by Anarbor

“Nothin’ On You” by B.o.B. with Bruno Mars

“White Wedding (Part 1)” by Billy Idol

“Girl All the Bad Guys Want” by Bowling for Soup

“Tonight I’m Getting Over You (Remix)” by Carly Rae Jepsen
with Nicki Minaj

“Lady Marmalade” by Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya &
P!nk

“Snakes On a Plane (Bring It)” by Cobra Starship, The
Academy Is..., Gym Class Heroes, The Sounds, and The All-American Rejects